thenhlfandomcom-20200215-history
Tomas Kaberle
| birth_place = Rakovník, Czechoslovakia | career_start = 1994 | draft = 204th overall | draft_year = 1996 | draft_team = Toronto Maple Leafs }} Tomas Kaberle (born on March 2, 1978) is a Czech professional ice hockey defenceman who currently is playing with Czech club HC Kladno. He previously played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Boston Bruins, the Carolina Hurricanes and the Montreal Canadiens. A four-time NHL All-Star, Tomas also plays for the Czech national ice hockey team and won a bronze medal with the team at the 2006 Winter Olympics. He is currently the second-highest scoring defenceman in Maple Leafs franchise history, behind only Borje Salming. Even though he began and played most of his career with Toronto, it was only after Tomas was traded to the Boston Bruins that he won his first Stanley Cup. Playing Career Tomas was drafted 204th in the eighth round of the 1996 NHL Entry Draft by Toronto and saw limited playing time in the 1998–99 NHL season. After being eased into the Leafs lineup, he saw a significant increase in playing time in order to help fill in the gap on the Leafs after an injury to Bryan Berard in the 1999–2000 NHL season. By the 2001–02 campaign, Tomas had improved enough to be selected to the World team at the 2002 NHL All-Star Game. Later that year, he was named to the Czech national ice hockey team for the 2002 Winter Olympics. On September 29, 2001, Tomas was signed as a restricted free agent by HC Rabat Kladno in the Czech Extraliga until a contract was negotiated. He later signed a contract with the Leafs securing his services through 2005–06. On September 17, 2004, Tomas was signed as a free agent by HC Rabat Kladno during the 2004-05 NHL lockout. On February 11, 2006, Tomas was re-signed to a five-year contract extension worth $21.25 million with a no-trade clause for the first three years of the contract, effective July 1, 2006. This deal locked him in until the end of the 2010–11 NHL season. On October 28, 2006, he scored his first career hat-trick against the Montreal Canadiens. He also scored in his first shootout attempt that night. On January 12, 2007, Tomas was named as an Eastern Conference All-Star Game participant for the second time in his career. During a March 2, 2007 game against the New Jersey Devils, he suffered from a concussion and was carried off the ice on a stretcher as a result of a late hit to the head by Cam Janssen. While no penalty was called on the play, Janssen was assessed a three-game suspension. In an interview, Tomas mentioned that Janssen had not contacted him for reconciliation and went on to say, "I don't care hear from him. He doesn't respect me and I don't respect him." After missing eight games, he returned to the Leafs lineup on March 23, 2007. Although Tomas has scored relatively few goals, he has scored seven times in overtime. During the 2008 NHL All Star Game Skills Competition, he became the fourth player, after Ray Bourque, Mark Messier and Jeremy Roenick to hit all four targets in four shots in the accuracy challenge. He participated again in the accuracy challenge during the 2009 NHL All-Star Game in Montreal although he was unable to defend his title against Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins. During a losing streak at the start of the 2009–10 regular season, Tomas (along with Niklas Hagman) led the Leafs to their first victory of the season, a 6–3 victory over the Anaheim Ducks. He had one goal and four assists, and earned the second star of the game (because Hagman had a hat-trick). He began the season on a particular hot streak, scoring 22 points in the first 20 games and leading the NHL in defenceman scoring. On December 1, 2009, Tomas passed former Leaf great Tim Horton for second on the franchise all-time scoring list amongst defencemen with his 459th NHL point. On February 18, 2011, he was traded to the Boston Bruins for Joe Colborne, Boston's first-round choice (which was later traded to Anaheim who selected Richard Rakell) in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft & Boston's second-round choice (which was later traded to Colorado, then Washington and then Dallas who selected Mike Winther in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft conditional upon the Bruins reaching the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals or re-signing Tomas On June 15, 2011, Tomas won the Stanley Cup with the Bruins, beating the Vancouver Canucks. On July 5, 2011, he signed a three-year contract with the Carolina Hurricanes as a free agent worth $12.75 million, playing in 29 games & registering 9 assists and a -12 rating. On December 9, 2011, Tomas was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Jaroslav Spacek. He recorded two assists in his first game in a Canadiens uniform in a 2-1 victory over the New Jersey Devils. During the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Tomas returned to the Czech Republic to play for Kladno. On October 25, 2012 (after playing in ten games), he decided to stop playing in order to spend more time with his family. Having returned for the shortened 2012–13 season, Tomas was primarily a healthy scratch amongst the resurgent Canadiens blueline. On March 30, 2013, he was placed on waivers by the team, but was unclaimed. He finished the season appearing in a career low 10 games for 3 points. On June 28, 2013, Tomas was given a compliance buyout by the Montreal Canadiens to be released as a free agent. In September of 2013, he signed a contract with HC Kladno. Career Statistics International Statistics International Play }} Tomas was selected to the Czech national team in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, where they were eliminated in the quarterfinals. He and his older brother Frantisek were members of the Czech national ice hockey team at the 2005 World Ice Hockey Championships in Vienna where they won gold. While Frantisek won the World Championships for the fifth time, it was the first victory for Tomas In December of 2005, they were both named for the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, where they won bronze medals with the team. The next year, Tomas accepted his nomination for 2006 World Championships in Riga where the Czech team won silver medals. He also played in the 2010 Olympics for the Czech Republic, but rejected an invitation to play at the 2010 World Ice Hockey Championships held in Germany. Awards & Achievements *Played in NHL All-Star Game (2002, 2007, 2008 and 2009) *Won NHL All-Star Game Accuracy Competition (2008) *Toronto Maple Leafs' Molson Cup winner (2009–10) *Stanley Cup (2010–11; as a member of the Boston Bruins) Personal Life Category:1978 births Category:Toronto Maple Leafs draft picks Category:Toronto Maple Leafs players Category:Boston Bruins players Category:Carolina Hurricanes players Category:Montreal Canadiens players Category:HC Kladno players Category:Stanley Cup champions